Brilliant Minds Star Teddy Sears Was Surprised By Wolf & Nichols' Big Moment: "Is This Coming Too Early?"

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7.Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7 aired on Monday, November 11 and closed out one of the procedural’s ongoing plotlines. Roman, who was, up until recently, a John Doe, is finally able to communicate with the Bronx team and make his wishes known. In a deeply moving scene, Roman chooses to end his life rather than be confined to a hospital bed. He passes away with his partner, Alex, by his side, and their relationship reminds the cast of characters that life is short. Inspired by Ramon and Alex’s story, Wolf strides across the street and kisses Nichols right before the credits roll.




There’s been chemistry between the doctors since they first appeared onscreen together, but the Chair of Neurosurgery disapproved of Wolf and his approach to care. It seemed as if Brilliant Minds might be setting the stage for a slow burn romance, which made the cinematic moment unexpected. Teddy Sears (The Flash), who plays Nichols, shares that he was also surprised when reading the scene and wondered if his character’s kiss with Wolf came too soon. However, Sears is, ultimately, glad that Wolf took the jump and is excited for viewers to see what’s in store for the pair in Episode 8.

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ScreenRant interviews Sears about Episode 7’s major cliffhanger, what’s next for his character’s relationship with Wolf, and whether Brilliant Minds season 1 will dive into Nichols’ backstory.


Sears Didn’t Know About Wolf And Nichols’ Kiss Until He Read The Script For Episode 7

“The first thought I had was, ‘Is this coming too early?’ I didn’t know it was going to happen at all.”

Wolf and Nichols kiss in Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7

Screen Rant: Did you know about the kiss before you received the script, or did you find out as you were reading?

Teddy Sears: That’s it. I read it. I was given no advanced heads-up. It was a surprise to me. The first thought I had was, “Is this coming too early?” I didn’t know it was going to happen at all. The writers had hinted at Josh and Wolf’s relationship maybe moving towards something like this, but who knew if they were going to change their minds or if they were going to save the kiss for the last episode or something.

So I was surprised, and then I was excited, because it was something that they wanted to be a grand gesture and to have it appear cinematically. A street corner in New York, Wolf crossing the street, and just going for it. I’m thrilled, and it’s a big payoff after the episode that we had. It was a very emotional episode that culminated in Roman’s decision to transition with his partner/boyfriend played beautifully by Mishka Yarovoy.

I think it made a lot of sense after what the actors went through to have it culminate, particularly for Wolf, have it culminate in his decision to do something impulsive and with emotion. Wolf is this sort of raw nerve of emotion and compassion and empathy, and to have him act on that I think was really big for him as a character, but very exciting for me too, because it broke the tension these two have between each other and crossed the line into something that now these two can act upon and explore in Episode 8.


The episode ended on a massive cliffhanger. Where do Wolf and Nichols go from here?

Teddy Sears: I think that’s what these two are trying to figure out in Episode 8. “What is this? Where do we go from here? What is this thing that we both feel towards each other?” Without giving too much away, the audience is going to watch these two stumble through trying to figure out, “Is this even anything? Are we just having fun? Are we just behaving like teenagers again because we have these feelings for each other, or are we going to discuss what is actually going on and opt to do anything about it?”

Those are the things that we see happen in Episode 8. A “push and pull” is the expression that comes to mind between these two in trying to negotiate within themselves, and then with each other, “What are we doing?” I’m excited to see it play out. It was really fun to act with Zach, who is a master, to me, of our field. And to see his decisions from take to take and moment to moment was very exciting. I don’t actually know how they put it together, but I do know that there’s a tidy and buttoned-up way forward at the end of Episode 8 for the audience to get excited about for Episode 9 and beyond.


Nichols Started To Respect And Understand Wolf At The End Of The Brilliant Minds Pilot

“It switched from being dubious and disinterested, frankly, to having a growing respect and understanding for the way this man is.”

Wolf and Nichols sitting next to each other in Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7

Nichols acted like he wasn’t a big fan of Wolf at first. When do you think that shift occurred?

Teddy Sears: It’s funny. I think back to the end of the pilot where Wolf is at the chalkboard, and he’s explaining his novel approach to helping the patient manage their way forward with her two children and there being this moment where, to me, Josh turned from, “Who is this guy? I don’t really buy his way forward with patients.” It switched from being dubious and being disinterested, frankly, to having a growing respect and understanding for the way this man is, and how he has crafted his life being with his patients. We see respect build at the end of the pilot.

And then, as far as attraction, I think there’s always been a tension between these two, a professional tension, a kind of alpha, if you will, tension, trying to suss each other out. To me, we see it build in that really late-night episode after Wolf comes back from the club, and they’re sitting together waiting for MRI results in a very dark, dimly lit room. It’s probably four in the morning and these two are shoulder to shoulder, kind of huddled around the monitor, talking about their own experiences as doctors with their patients. And then cut to the next episode at the gun range when Wolf gets to see a piece of who Josh is and why he is the way he is, where he came from, and how his life was shaped by his military experience under “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

I think that there are these moments that maybe Wolf sees something in Josh like, “Huh, okay. I never experienced that before. I think I like that about him, even though he kind of p*sses me off.” And the same goes for Josh with Wolf—these moments of reluctance, like, “D*mn, I’m reluctant to admit this, but the guy’s got something. He’s got charisma. He’s got passion, he’s got devotion, he’s handsome. D*mmit. Look at that beard.” Whatever it is, these moments that we see them slowly go through, to me, it was a slow build.

I thought it was going to happen later, but when I talk about it with you right now, when I look back at it, all of these moments bring us to a logical place, specifically after Roman’s decision to pass in Episode 7, that everyone is vulnerable, everyone is tender, everyone is cracked wide open, and what better time to explore these feelings? I’m just glad that Wolf took the bold step to make it happen in that very cool moment on the street at the end of Episode 7, which I’m so excited to see. I remember shooting it and thinking, “I bet this is going to be gorgeous. With how they’re setting it up and where the shots are, I bet it’s going to be gorgeous.” I’m just very excited to see how it cut together.


Sears Is Excited To Learn More About Nichols’ Background In Future Seasons

“I have my ideas and my backstory, but I hope that we can take a deeper dive.”

Teddy Sears as Dr. Josh Nicols in Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7

We get little tidbits here and there, but we haven’t learned much about Nichols’ backstory and his personal life. Will the show dive more into that this season?

Teddy Sears: I don’t want to give too much away, but there’s a lot to explore in what Nichols has hinted at and where he came from, whether it’s with his parents or his military background, or there being a special someone in his life from very early on in his time in the military. These are things that I hope get properly fleshed out as we go along. We don’t answer all those questions this season, but if we are teed up and ready to go for another, I would suspect that we would get into that in a way that I would be excited to see.

I would be excited to learn more about Josh, frankly. I would be excited to have the writers fill me in a bit more. I have my ideas and my backstory, but I hope that we can take a deeper dive. It’s always exciting to see where someone came from and the things that make them who they are as adults. It allows us, as an audience, to feel a greater sense of compassion and understanding. And origin stories are always cool, so here’s hoping.


About NBC’s Medical Drama Brilliant Minds

Michael Grassi serves as creator, writer, and executive producer

Inspired by the extraordinary life and work of world-famous author and physician Oliver Sacks, “Brilliant Minds” follows a revolutionary, larger-than-life neurologist and his team of interns as they explore the last great frontier – the human mind – while grappling with their own relationships and mental health.

Check out our Brilliant Minds interview with Tamberla Perry, as well.

Brilliant Minds airs Mondays on NBC at 10 p.m. ET.